Trump will likely end US support for Syrian rebels despite their pleas for help

Bethan McKernan
The Independent
2016-11-12 21:51:00
President-elect Donald Trump has reaffirmed his campaign trail position that assisting the Syrian government in fighting Isis should be the US’ main objective in Syria, despite appeals from rebels for continued help in their fight against President Bashar al-Assad.

« I’ve had an opposite view of many people regarding Syria. My attitude was you’re fighting Syria, Syria is fighting Isis, and you have to get rid of Isis, » he said in a wide-ranging interview with the Wall Street Journal on Friday.

Mr Trump has stated that while he « did not like [Mr Assad] at all », shoring up his regime is the best way to stem the extremism that has flourished in the chaos of the civil war and threatens the US.

He has also been emphatic about mending ties with Russia, Syria’s long-standing ally and military backer in the conflict.

« Russia is now totally aligned with Syria, and now you have Iran, which is becoming powerful, because of us, is aligned with Syria… Now we’re backing rebels against Syria, and we have no idea who those people are, » he told the Journal, referring to the hardline Sunni Islamist elements present in rebel ranks. If the US attacks Mr Assad, « We end up fighting Russia, » he added.
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Assange: ‘Google is not what it seems’

Claire Bernish
The Free Thought Project
2016-11-14 13:56:00

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Julian Assange cautioned all of us a while back, in the vein of revelations similar to those provided by Edward Snowden, that Google — the insidious search engine with a reputation for powering humanity’s research — plays the dark hand role in furthering U.S. imperialism and foreign policy agendas.

Now, as the Wikileaks founder faces days of questioning by a Swedish special prosecutor over rape allegations inside his Ecuadorian Embassy haven in London today — and particularly in wake of the presidential election — Assange’s warning Google « is not what it seems » must be revisited.

Under intense scrutiny by the U.S. State Department for several controversial Wikileaks’ publications of leaked documents in 2011, Assange first met Google Executive Chairman, then-CEO, Eric Schmidt, who approached the political refugee under the premise of a new book. Schmidt, whose worth Forbes estimates exceeds $11 billion, partnered with Council on Foreign Relations and State Department veteran, Jared Cohen, for the work, tentatively titled The Empire of the Mind — and asked Assange for an interview.

Later acknowledging naïvte in agreeing to meet the pair of tech heavyweights, Assange found afterward how enmeshed in and integral to U.S. global agendas Schmidt and Cohen had become.
Comment: Can Google effect regime change? Appears so.
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Egypt overturns death sentence for ousted President Morsi, orders new trial

TASS
2016-11-15 21:14:00

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Egypt’s Court of Cassation has sustained the appeal of former President Mohamed Morsi and a number of leaders of the outlawed Islamist organization Muslin Brotherhood over death sentence on the case of jailbreak in January 2011 and involvement in mass riots, the local television said on Tuesday. The higher instance court ruled to overturn the verdict and send the case back for a new trial.

The appeal to challenge the last year’s verdict was lodged on behalf of 27 Islamist leaders sentenced to life or death on this case. In October, prosecutors of the Court of Cassation recommended to revoke the verdict against Morsi. After the Islamists had been ousted from power in the summer of 2013, criminal cases were opened against most of their leaders and activists. On June 16, Egypt’s criminal court upheld a death sentence to Morsi for being behind jailbreaks and attacks on police during the 2011 riots. He was also sentences to 45 years in jail on other charges, including those of spying for foreign states.

Among those sentenced to capital punishments were Muslim Brotherhood supreme mentor Mohammed Badia, his deputy Rashad al-Bayoumi, Islamist activist Issam al-Aryan and former parliament speaker Saad al-Qatatni. The rest were sentences to life in prison. Charges were brought against 130 people in all but only 27 stood trial, others were sentences in absentia.
Comment: In case anyone forgot:

‘Carnivore of the first order’ – Check out this Soros interview from the 90s

Niall Bradley
Sott.net
2016-11-14 20:49:00

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The following video is from an ‘ancient’ episode of CBS 60 Minutes, aired in the US on December 20, 1998, in which billionaire globalist George Soros is interviewed about his conquests

Since then and now, Soros’ power has only grown, evidenced in the fact that anyone mentioning his acts of financial terrorism is derided in the mainstream as an ‘alt.right angry white male conspiracy theorist’.

This ‘consensus’ was only recently pierced by leaked emails confirming – by Soros’ own hand – that he is in fact meddling in the internal affairs of countless countries, and on a routine basis, but the mainstream media remains overwhelmingly silent about his activities.

Have a look…

View on Sott.net
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Killary reportedly was in drunken rage on election night, attacking Podesta and Mook around midnight

North Crane
2016-11-15 20:35:00

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My friend is a trustworthy reporter who often sees anti-Clinton stories spiked. Not everybody at CNN is bad. The leadership is, though.This is a respected neutral who is being silenced – A good friend of mine, sick of CNN suppressing inconvenient stories that hurt the left.

On election night, Hillary was straight up « Hitler-in-the-bunker »

The few honest MSM reporters have been reduced to leaking info to new media people because their corporate bosses won’t let them report it. A friend at CNN says Clintonland reports Hillary was in a « psychotic, drunken rage » election night; needed hardcore meds to speak Wednesday. CNN reporter tells me Hillary became physically violent towards Robby Mook and John Podesta around midnight; had to be briefly restrained. Hillary on election night was straight-up Hitler-in-the-bunker shit. It even included psychotic screaming about « the Russians. » The doctor helped restrain Hillary when she violently attacked Mook and Podesta at midnight. Gave sedatives, then amphetamines next morning. CNN reporter says Hillary needed so many amphetamines Wed morning she had unexpected nosebleeds all day. Fear was she’d bleed at concession.

And we seem to have separate sources corroborating her drunknedness:

View on Sott.net
Comment: Her angry and violent behavior has been noted in the past by those who are unfortunate enough to work for her. An ex-Secret Service agent authored a new book which detailed her behavior, where he stated:

Byrne said Clinton was feared by her staff and was notorious for her yelling. Byrne told Hannity that she has « blown up » at him and other Secret Service agents.

« She gets angry at things that are policy issues that, you know, take time to fix, and she’s got this attitude where she wants things fixed right now, immediately. She screams and yells at people, » Byrne said in an interview aired Monday night.

« There’s many examples that I site in my book where she blows up at people, » Byrne said. « Like I’ve said, she has blown up at me before, and agents, and her staff. At one time, I saw her staff so afraid to tell her about a mistake that was made. They weren’t upset about the waste of the mistake, ordering the wrong invitations, they were terrified that someone was going to have to tell Hillary Clinton that there was a mistake made. »

While the liberal media spent thousands of words selling the notion of Trump’s fierce and immature temperament, it’s Killary’s temperament that is, in reality, the more concerning of the two. Even those in her own camp have had to deal with her emotional instability and violent tendencies, as this report details from over a year ago:

« Hillary’s been having screaming, child-like tantrums that have left staff members in tears and unable to work, » says a campaign aide. « She thought the nomination was hers for the asking, but her mounting problems have been getting to her and she’s become shrill and, at times, even violent. »

In one incident, Hillary berated a low-level campaign worker for making a scheduling mistake. When the girl had the nerve to turn her back on Hillary and walk away, Hillary grabbed her arm.

Maybe the liberal media and their blind followers should stop for a moment and take a look at their beloved candidate. They might realize that the person they so desperately wanted to win the presidency was in no way, shape or form capable of being ‘presidential’ in her attitude, demeanor and interpersonal skills.
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Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court say they have « reasonable basis » to believe the United States committed « war crimes » by torturing prisoners in Afghanistan. The U.S. military subjected at least 61 detainees in Afghanistan to « torture, cruel treatment, [and] outrages upon personal dignity, » an initial investigative report said on November 14.

A further 27 people were tortured by the CIA, it said, with the majority of the alleged crimes occurring between 2003 and 2004 when President George W. Bush was in office. The United States never ratified the treaty establishing the court, but because the alleged abuses occurred in countries that ratified the treaty — Afghanistan, Poland, Lithuania and Romania — the court has jurisdiction.
Comment: Hopefully, with waning US influence, the ICC will move forward with their investigation so the US will officially be recognized as the world’s war criminal.
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Merkel urges countries to maintain collapsing globalization plans

RT
2016-11-15 20:16:00

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged countries to enter into multilateral agreements with a view of globalization rather than to adopt protectionist measures. The message is seen as a thinly veiled warning to US President-elect Donald Trump.

« We are at the moment in a situation in the European Union, in our country and worldwide where there is an argument about how we want to shape globalization, » the chancellor said at a meeting of Germany’s BDA employers association.

Donald Trump has widely criticized international trade agreements, saying they hurt American workers and the country’s competitiveness. In his campaign, Trump promised to « get tough » with China as well as to quit TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership), which has not been finalized yet.

The German government led by Merkel is urging the EU to join a similar trade deal with the US known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
Comment: Strengthening ‘multilateral instruments’ is just cloaked language for saying that Western powers need to be on the same page in order to dominate Eurasia. There is, of course, an alternative. The EU could actually work with other nations rather than trying to maintain Western dominance. That would be sensible, but unfortunately EU leaders are lacking in this basic human trait. Seems they are determined to drive their countries into the dirt.
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The president and CEO of PacketSled, a cybersecurity firm that develops software to detect the origin of cyber attacks, has resigned after he posted threats to assassinate President-Elect Donald Trump with a sniper rifle.
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Moscow: Former US ambassador McFaul banned from Russia

Polina Devitt
Reuters
2016-11-12 06:29:00

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Russia has banned Michael McFaul, a former U.S. ambassador to Moscow under President Barack Obama, from entering the country, McFaul and Russian Foreign Ministry sources said. Russia has a travel ban in place on some U.S. officials in retaliation for a U.S. ban on Russian officials entering the United States.

McFaul, U.S. ambassador in Moscow from 2012-2014, said he had learnt of the ban when applying for a visa to Russia to help defeated presidential candidate Hillary Clinton prepare for what he thought would be her transition to the White House. « I have hundreds of friends in Russia. I’m really sorry that these sanctions will make communicating with people harder, » McFaul wrote on social media on Saturday.

In a separate earlier post, he described why he thought he had been sanctioned. « (I) was told that I am the Kremlin’s sanctions list because of my close affiliation with Obama. I will take that as a compliment! The U.S. sanctioned Russians close to (President Vladimir) Putin. To the best of my knowledge, George Kennan was the last U.S. ambassador to USSR/Russia to be banned from traveling there. » Moscow declared Kennan persona non grata in 1952.

The Russian Foreign Ministry did not publicly confirm the ban, but ministry sources told Russian news agencies McFaul had been added to a sanctions list in 2014. He was not banned because of his support for Obama, a Foreign Ministry source told the TASS and RIA news agencies, but because of his « active participation in the destruction of the bilateral relationship and relentless lobbying in favor of a campaign to pressure Russia. »

The Kremlin had strained relations with McFaul when he was ambassador, bridling at his contacts with the opposition.

McFaul is now a professor of political science at Stanford University.
Comment: The ban should have been no surprise for McFaul, having gone into effect in 2014. He most likely also knew exactly why he was on that list. The idea that Clinton wanted this guy to interface with Russia spells out exactly what she wanted to accomplish.
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Killary reportedly had « screaming match » with Bill days before election, ex-president was furious over her campaign decisions

Ed Klein
Daily Mail
2016-11-15 19:28:00

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In the waning days of the presidential campaign, Bill and Hillary Clinton had a knock-down, drag-out fight about her effort to blame FBI Director James Comey for her slump in the polls and looming danger of defeat.

‘I was with Bill in Little Rock when he had this shouting match with Hillary on the phone and she accused Comey for reviving the investigation into her use of a private email server and reversing her campaign’s momentum,’ said one of Bill Clinton’s closest advisers.

‘Bill didn’t buy the excuse that Comey would cost Hillary the election,’ said the source. ‘As far as he was concerned, all the blame belonged to [campaign manager Robby] Mook, [campaign chairman John] Podesta and Hillary because they displayed a tone-deaf attitude about the feeble economy and its impact on millions and millions of working-class voters.

‘Bill was so red in the face during his conversation with Hillary that I worried he was going to have a heart attack. He got so angry that he threw his phone off the roof of his penthouse apartment and toward the Arkansas River.’
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Soros and neoliberal elite to meet in D.C. to strategize resistance movement against their elected president

Sputnik
2016-11-15 19:00:00

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Neoliberal billionaire George Soros and other wealthy Democratic donors are meeting to design a resistance strategy to undermine President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda when he takes office, the media reported.

The Democracy Alliance donor club is sponsoring the three-day conference which kicked off on Sunday at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Washington, DC, the Politico newspaper reported on Monday. The group will focus on devising a strategy to combat the « massive threats from Trump and Congress in 2017, » the report claimed.

US House of Representatives minority leader Nancy Pelosi and Senator Elizabeth Warren are expected to attend, according to the report, along with a slew of labor union and liberal group leaders.
Comment: A bunch of wealthy democrats are meeting to determine how they can overthrow a democratic election. It’s hard to tell if these ideologues can see their own towering hypocrisy. Most American can though, and that is why people wanted them out!
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George Soros 60 Minutes unearthed: « I don’t look at the social consequences of what I do »

Alex Christoforou
The Duran
2016-11-15 19:21:00

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George Soros tried to bury this video…and for good reason. In the interview Soros exclaims…

« I am basically there to make money. I cannot, and do not, look at the social consequences of what I do. »

The 13 minute video chronicles how Soros uses his money to further his neo-liberal cause, and more importantly fatten his bank account.

When asked, « Do you believe in God? » Soros answered, « No! »

Towards the end of the interview, a 60 Minutes commentator notes that « George Soros, in a way, is Donald Trump without the humility. »

View on Sott.net
Comment: More reading:

The Empire Strikes Back: Soros gathers an army to ‘take back power’ from Trump
Is a Soros/Clinton counter-revolution in the offing?
Clinton, Obama, Podesta, Soros and Abramovic linked to D.C. pedophile ring
Fomenting a national crisis and color revolution: Soros-funded anti-Trump protesters riot in cities across United States
The Clintons and Soros launching America’s Purple Revolution

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Kiev in a panic: Tymoshenko declares Third Maidan, emergency government committee prepares martial law

J. Arnoldski
Fort Russ
2016-11-14 00:27:00

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Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies are preparing for possible protest actions in the country. A headquarters for responding to a surge of protest activities has been established at the base of the National Security and Defense Committee of Ukraine. This has been confirmed by Ukrainian journalists close to the headquarter’s structures.

Among the planned measures is a crackdown on protest actions and the introduction of martial law in Kiev if the situation deteriorates to armed confrontation.

The headquarters is headed by the national security committee’s secretary, Alexander Turchynov. According to insider sources, the special structure also includes Defense Minister Arsen Avakov, General Prosecutor Yuri Lutsenko, Chief of General Staff Viktor Muzhenko, SBU and intelligence representatives, and also people’s deputy Sergey Pashinsky.
Comment: And here it comes. Hundreds are protesting outside government buildings against the poor economic conditions in Ukraine. Kiev is locked down. Police in riot gear are out in spades, and the idiots in the Ukrainian parliament are blaming a « Kremlin-orchestrated plan to destabilize Ukraine ». As if they’d need Russia’s help! RFE/RL reports:

Organizers of the protest included leaders of Opposition Bloc — created from the remnants of the defunct party of former President Viktor Yanukovych, who was driven from power by protests known as the Euromaidan and fled to Russia in 2014 — and former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s Batkivshchyna party.

« Three years after the [Euromaidan protests], we can say that Ukraine’s clan system has been revived. Unfortunately, we again have a president who is an oligarch of the highest level, » Tymoshenko said of President Petro Poroshenko in a call to protest published on the party’s site on November 14.

Her critics claimed she was merely fomenting unrest to further her own political ambitions, though some participants told RFE/RL that they had heeded Tymoshenko’s call to protest out of frustration with the government. Others, however, said they were apolitical and had come out to earn some money.
…
Anya, a 60-year-old pensioner who declined to give her last name because she feared having her $130-per-month pension taken away by the government for protesting, said she and her two friends answered an online advertisement that promised $5 for five hours of demonstrating.

Oleksandr Tkachuk, chief of staff of Ukraine’s domestic SBU security service, said that security was particularly tight because the authorities fear that the protests marked the start of a Kremlin-managed plan to undermine the government by supporting former political allies of Yanukovych and encouraging early parliamentary elections.

« We have previously stated that we have the information proving Russia’s attempts to hijack Ukrainian politics and internal affairs, exploit different grievances to provoke mass revolt and destroy the existing political system, » Tkachuk told RFE/RL. … « It does not necessarily mean that today’s demonstrations are completely organized by Russia’s puppets, » Tkachuk added. He provided no specific evidence of a Russian role in the protests.

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Largest NYT shareholder, billionaire Carlos Slim, was also major Killary donor

Sputnik
2016-11-15 18:39:00

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Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, a major donor to the US presidential campaign of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, is the biggest single shareholder in the company that owns the New York Times, Republican candidate Donald Trump told supporters on Friday.

On Thursday, the Times published an article about two women who accuse Trump of sexual misconduct in 1981 and 2005. The New York real estate mogul called those and other newly publicized allegations of inappropriate actions toward women false and said he would sue the Times for libel. « The largest shareholder at the Times[company] is Carlos Slim. Slim, as you know, comes from Mexico, » Trump said at a campaign rally in the state of North Carolina. « He has given millions of dollars to the Clintons and their initiatives. »

Trump, who at campaign stops routinely mocks the US media and has made disparaging remarks about Mexican immigrants, went on to say that New York Times reporters « are not journalists, they are corporate lobbyists for Carlos Slim and for Hillary Clinton. »

Slim, who Forbesmagazine ranked as the world’s second-richest man in 2015, owns a nearly 17 percent stake in the New York Times Co., making him its largest individual shareholder. However, Slim owns Class A shares, whereas the Sulzberger family of New York controls the company and its flagship newspaper through its 90 percent ownership of Class B stock. A member of the family, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., is chairman of the Times company and the newspaper’s publisher.
Comment: The NYT, like many media establishments in the United States, have blatantly exposed themselves during Trump’s campaign and their obscenely biased coverage in favor of Killary.

See: New York Times eats crow on Trump coverage; vows to report more honestly – Trump tweets response
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It’s impossible not to laugh and feel pity when looking at those who in the media and on social networks are now saying that the arrest of [Russian Economy Minister] Ulyukaev [for allegedly taking a $2 million bribe] was made possible exclusively thanks to the telephone conversation between Trump and Putin. According to this conspiracy theory, without Washington’s permission, Putin never ever would have dared lay a finger on Ulyukaev and only now gathered the wiretap transcripts from many months and years before the American elections.

Guys, let’s respect our country. We are not Ukraine. Putin and the FSB don’t need a nod from Washington to extinguish corruption. Open the calendar on your computer and look at what year it is. It is 2016 and those who are talking about some kind of permission from Washington are either stuck in 1995 or have confused today’s Moscow with Kiev. There’s no need to be like our neighbors, who to this day think that every day the sun rises only because of the State Department. Washington is not the center of the universe or the world. It’s time to get used to this.
Comment: More on the case: Russian economy minister caught taking $2mn bribe from oil giant Rosneft (UPDATES)
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Society’s Child

Sickening: Stepmom gets life sentence for horrible abuse of son leading to his death by being fed to pigs

Tony Rizzo
Kansas City Star
2016-11-14 21:25:00

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The living hell of Adrian Jones’ last year on earth ended with his emaciated and battered 7-year-old body consumed by pigs.

On Monday, one of the adults who inflicted such horrific abuse on the Kansas City, Kan., boy was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

Heather Jones, Adrian’s stepmother, also was sentenced Monday to five years and eight months in prison for two counts of child abuse. District Judge Mike Grosko followed the terms of the plea agreement and ordered the sentences to run consecutively.

Jones, 30, pleaded guilty in Wyandotte County District Court last month to a charge of first-degree murder.

The boy’s remains were found last year, and authorities said it appeared he had been fed to pigs on property rented by Jones and her husband in the 5200 block of North 99th Street.
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Thousand of Greeks take to streets Athens to protest Obama’s visit

RT
2016-11-15 21:04:00

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Leftist demonstrators protesting against US President Barack Obama’s visit to Athens have clashed with police, who used tear gas to disperse the crowd as people tried to break through cordons.

Some 7,000 people took to the streets of central Athens on Tuesday to protest Obama’s visit to the Greek capital, Reuters reports. The demonstrators initially planned to walk all the way to the US Embassy located in another part of the city, but the procession was disrupted as protesters clashed with police officers.

« We don’t need protectors! » one of the banners carried by the demonstrators read. Some could be heard exclaiming: « Yankees go home! »

One protester was seen setting an American flag on fire.

All public gatherings were banned in the central part of Athens due to Obama’s two-day visit. Riot police parked buses along Obama’s route and erected cordons.

No injuries or arrests have been reported so far, according to AP.
Comment: Leftist « progressive » Greeks have a very different opinion than their US counterparts. It’s this kind of cluelessness about anything that has ever happened outside the USA that dominates « progressive » thinking in the USA that leads them to think Obummer and Killary are wonderful pacifist populist lefties and Trump is a fascist.
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Smile! Over half of Americans have their photos in facial recognition databases

John Vibes
Activist Post
2016-11-14 14:05:00

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According to a new report by Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy and Technology, half of Americans now have photos of themselves stored in facial recognition databases. The vast majority of these citizens are not suspects in crimes, nor do they have criminal records.

The report indicated that over 117 million adults are stored in facial recognition databases, and any of their photos can be used at any time in a « virtual lineup, » where they can be picked out by law enforcement as potential suspects.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), many police departments use photos from Facebook, photos from protests, and even videos of average people walking down the street taken from cameras posted up around urban centers. It was even indicated in the report that drivers license photos are used to populate these databases, meaning that almost anyone could be a potential suspect in one of these lineups.

The report’s findings, along with revelations from the ACLU on police monitoring in Baltimore, suggest that the technology may be violating the rights of millions of Americans and is disproportionately affecting communities of color, advocates said.
Comment: Half of Americans in ‘virtual lineup’ face-recognition police programs – study
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We’re all being played for chumps: How the media profits from ceaseless fearmongering

Charles Hugh Smith
Of Two Minds
2016-11-14 13:49:00

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If you want to stop being played as a chump, turn off the CNN/MSM and disengage from the self-referential social media distraction.

Let’s start by asking: if Trump had lost and his supporters had angrily taken to the streets, destroying private property and threatening police officers while proclaiming « not my president, » would the mainstream media have characterized the rioters differently than it has the pro-Clinton rioters?

Any fair-minded observer knows the answer is yes: the CNN/MSM would have lambasted the « rioting deplorables » as « what’s wrong with America. »

This tells us something else is going on here. I want to explain what’s really going on, but first we need to run a simple experiment:

Turn off CNN, PBS, CBS et al., your Twitter and Facebook feeds, etc. for seven days, and live solely in the media-free real world for a week. If you’re truly interested in understanding what’s really going on in America, then come back in a week and read the rest of the essay.

Have you pulled out the CNN/MSM/social media fearmongering/propaganda dripline for a few days? This is a necessary step, as we shall soon see.
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How to break an illusion

Scott Adams
Dilbert.com
2016-11-14 20:19:00

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Anti-Trump protesters believe they are fighting the good fight to stop a racist, homophobic, sexist monster. But about half of the country – the half that I’m in – is in a different movie. In our movie, we selected a new president and half of the country is in cognitive dissonance over it. Assuming the protesters are the ones experiencing the illusion, and not us, how can we release them from their zombie-like existence so they will stop blocking traffic?

I’ll tell you the general approach.
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Four scapegoats stand trial for using UK convoys in Syria to aid terrorism

RT
2016-11-15 19:50:00

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Four men accused of using aid convoys bound for Syria to transport ‘items for terrorists’ are standing trial at the Old Bailey in London. Syed Hoque, 37, of Stoke-on-Trent, allegedly sent £4,500, to his nephew who was fighting the government of Bashar Assad.

Hoque is also accused of making « other property » available between December 1, 2012, and May 31, 2014, along with three other men: Mashoud Miah, 27, of east London; Mohammed Hussain, 30, of east London; and Pervez Rafiq, 46, of Birkby, Huddersfield. All four men have denied the charges, and Hoque has also refuted two additional counts of funding terrorism.

Prosecutor Annabel Darlow QC said: « The defendants made use, or so it would appear, of aid convoys as a means of moving money and other property out of the UK to Syria. » Darlow added that the prosecution was not suggesting the convoys did not have a legitimate charitable purpose.

View on Sott.net
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Evolution or revolution? Anti-Trump protestors need to be honest about their true intentions

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
2016-11-15 00:00:00

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The anti-Trump protesters must be honest with themselves about the true intentions of their protest. And here’s why.

The protests against Donald Trump that happened directly after his election victory appear to be petering out. They were never very large, and were always going to end given the indisputable fact – which the protests can’t change – that Donald Trump is going to be the next President of the United States.

The protests have, however, attracted a great deal of attention and in view of that, and because I know of some people who have taken part in them, I feel that I should offer my views of them.

Firstly, people have a right to protest provided they do so in a lawful and peaceful way.

Secondly, whilst they have a right to protest against Donald Trump, they need to be clear what they are protesting against. If by protesting they are trying to stop Donald Trump from becoming President of the United States, then since Trump has been elected legally and constitutionally, they are taking a revolutionary position.
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Lawyers for Assange will likely appeal to Trump to close rape investigation

Sputnik
2016-11-15 19:50:00

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Lawyers for WikiLeaks have announced that they may appeal to US president-elect Donald Trump to close the investigation into publisher Julian Assange.

Lawyers for Assange say that they are hopeful that Swedish prosecutors will also close the rape case against him after concluding their questioning of him in London on Tuesday. His lawyers argued that the Swedish prosecutors have made procedural mistakes in the investigation into their client.

« The interview with Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London has ended. The results of the interview will later be reported from Ecuador to the Swedish prosecutors in a written statement. After this report, the prosecutors will take a view on the continuation of the investigation, » a statement from the Swedish Prosecution Authority read.
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Ohio attorney jailed for sexually assaulting clients under hypnosis

RT
2016-11-15 19:35:00

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An Ohio attorney who induced clients into a hypnotic trance before sexually assaulting them has been jailed for 12 years. Prosecutors in Lorain County said 59-year-old Michael Fine had, under the guise of providing legal assistance, carried out a spate of attacks on women for his own sexual pleasure by using hypnosis on his victims.

The father-of-two’s crimes were exposed only when a client became suspicious and began recording her conversations with Fine. The extent of his manipulation later became apparent when one of his victims secretly videoed a meeting at his office as part of a police sting, reports NBC4I news. The attorney was sentenced to 12 years in prison at a Lorain County court on Monday, two months after he plead guilty to sexually-motivated kidnapping and attempted kidnapping, report The Chronicle Telegram.

Judge Patricia A. Cosgrove said Fine had used relaxation techniques to hypnotize, abuse people and « take their dignity. » Prior to sentencing, Fine said he had « remorse and grief in my heart. »
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Cop caught raping woman on his own dash-cam charged a second time for another rape, other victims urged to come forward

Matt Agorist
The Free Thought Project
2016-11-14 00:00:00

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Spring Hill, TN — A man who swore an oath to uphold the constitution, and whose ostensible job description is to protect the public he serves, has been charged with sexual assault while on duty — for the second time — in just two months.

According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Spring Hill Police Officer Christopher Odom was caught raping at least two women in two separate incidents during on-duty traffic stops in June and July. Only two months after he was charged with sexual battery in those instances, Odom was charged again for another incident last September.

In September of last year, according to TBI, Odom stopped an adult female, followed her home on the Williamson County side of Spring Hill, and made her engage in sexual contact with him while he was on duty.

As the Free Thought Project reported last month, the TBI say they launched their investigation on August 1 after they learned Odom pulled over a car driven by a female in June and raped her.

According to a press release, the TBI says it happened again with another female in July. The September assault was apparently discovered while the investigation into the June and July assaults was ongoing.
Comment: For more information on Odom and his disgusting offences see this article: Dashcam evidence of cop raping women while on duty leads to his arrest
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Gone viral in China: Trump’s granddaughter recites poetry in Chinese

RT
2016-11-14 10:29:00

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A video of president-elect Donald Trump’s 5-year-old granddaughter reciting poetry in Chinese has gone viral. Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, first shared the video of her daughter, Arabella Kushner, on Instagram in February, but it has since resurfaced on Chinese social media in the wake of Trump winning the US presidential election.

Kushner has been studying Chinese since she was 18 months old. The video was made to celebrate Chinese New Year, with Kushner wearing traditional Chinese dress and surrounded by Chinese decorations as she recited poetry from the Tang Dynasty. « Arabella wanted to have a pre-bedtime #ChineseNewYear party this past Sunday evening, » Ivanka wrote. « She got all dressed up and performed songs and poems for Jared, Joseph and me. »

Many sharing the video in China said they were « shocked » to learn Trump’s granddaughter could speak Mandarin.

« At least the video shows that Trump places importance on education and did not shut the door on foreign culture, » one Weibo user said.

« In order to figure out whether Chinese people are secretly insulting him, he actually urged his granddaughter to learn Chinese! » another joked.

« Looks like Trump realizes the future belongs to China, so it’s not impossible for her granddaughter to immigrate to China in the future, » said another.

Neil Young joins water protectors at Standing Rock; Obama, Army Corp of Engineers pending permit to drill

Claire Bernish
The Free Thought Project.com
2016-11-14 00:00:00

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Legendary musician and songwriter Neil Young celebrated his 71st birthday on Saturday in the most fitting way possible — by performing for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and other water protectors camped to oppose the Dakota Access Pipeline.

« Got my birthday wish today, my girl took me to #StandWithStandingRock, » Young wrote in a Facebook post, referring to his girlfriend, actress and activist Daryl Hannah. Both posted footage of the informal concert to draw attention to the struggle against the insidious pipeline and continued exploitation of Native Americans and Indigenous peoples.

Rather than setting up a formal stage, Young meandered through the gathered crowds, playing guitar, and singing « Indian Giver » in political solidarity — a welcome sight at the still-growing encampments near the banks of the Missouri River, considering reports suggest a crucial decision by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers could come any day now.

At the center of the dispute sits a permitby the Corps which would grant Energy Transfer Partners the green light to drill under the Lake Oahe reservoir portion of the Missouri. Lake Oahe and the river supply drinking water to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and no less than 18 million people downstream.
Comment: It’s coming down to the wire for Dakota Access and the Standing Rock Sioux. What matters more – Big business, profit and greed? Or, would it be the exclusive land rights of one of our indigenous Sovereign Nations and water protection for the tribe and 18M others affected by this decision. If it comes to pass that USACE is allowed to drill, and it likely will, this will be just one more sell-out of the people to add to the plunder, and one more reason to detest the PTB in the USA.

« Today, after six years of offering his statement to the Swedish authorities, Julian Assange has finally been given the opportunity to do so, » said a statement released by the WikiLeaks founder Monday evening. « Sweden’s failure to progress the preliminary investigation until now has resulted in a gross breach of Mr Assange’s right to be presumed innocent, and has fatally harmed his ability to meaningfully defend himself. »

Assange’s team complained that his Swedish counsel, Per Samuelson, « was not notified or summoned » for the start of the interview, despite being in London specifically for that very purpose, and that despite « concerns » the authorities « proceeded anyway. »

« The clear breach of process did not stop Mr Assange from cooperating fully, » said his statement. « Mr Assange felt compelled to participate even with these problems. »
Comment: For more on the actual questioning Assange received:

Swedish Chief Prosecutor Ingrid Isgren has arrived at Ecuador’s London embassy to question WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange, following a prolonged deadlock in an alleged rape case opened in Sweden more than six years ago.

Assange has been residing in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London since claiming political asylum back in 2012, when Sweden issued a European arrest warrant for him. An Ecuadorean prosecutor is interviewing Assange, asking questions the Swedish side had submitted previously. The interview is attended by Sweden’s chief prosecutor Ingred Isgren. Swedish police inspector Cecilia Redell is also reportedly to be present. Both are allowed to ask for clarifications to Assange’s responses, but not put any fresh questions forward.

Assange’s answers will be transcribed and sent to the Swedish authorities for processing. If he consents to it, a DNA sample will also be taken from him.

Assange’s lawyer Per Samuelsson said the questioning could last for several days, adding that it was too early to say what the meeting will bring about and what information revealed by Assange would be made public, AFP reported.

Ecuador’s foreign minister Guillaume Long told the Press Association that he was « pleased » with the perspective of the interview at last.

« This is something that Ecuador has been inviting the Swedish prosecutors to do ever since we granted asylum to Mr. Assange in 2012.

« What we have asked from Sweden and the UK are guarantees that Mr. Assange will not be extradited to a third country where he could be persecuted for his work as a journalist, » Long said.

Throughout the years, Assange has not been charged with any offence under Swedish law but was sought for questioning over complaints of sexual assault by two women in 2010. He has been sought for questioning on allegations of four counts of sexual misconduct, which he repeatedly denied and three of which have now expired under Sweden’s Statute of Limitations. Technically free to leave the embassy, the WikiLeaks founder, however, decided to stay, repeatedly raising concerns over Swedish demands that he be questioned in person, as he feared the prosecutors in fact want to extradite him to the United States.

There he faces questioning and potentially charges over his whistleblowing activities, as the FBI is investigating him for ‘espionage.’ The investigation revolves around the Iraq War leaks, sent to WikiLeaks by former US Army Private Chelsea Manning. She is currently serving a 35-year jail sentence for the leaks. With current US President Barack Obama reluctant to clear Assange, his supporters have turned to President-elect Donald Trump with a petition requesting him to pardon the whistleblowers.

Political activist and artist Clark Stoeckly told RT it would be wise for the incoming president to let Assange off the hook as it would draw liberals to Trump’s side.

« Julian is due to have some freedom so that he can continue to do the work he sought to do. If Obama doesn’t make the decision to pardon Manning, Assange, and Snowden, he continues to live with this legacy of being the president who started a war on whistleblowers. It’s going to be in Trump’s hands to take that prize and fight for truth. And I think it would certainly change the way the liberals and those on the left view Trump, » Stoeckly said.

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Defcon Warning System reduces threat to lowest possible state after Trump election

Joey Millar
Express UK
2016-11-15 17:56:00

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The Defcon Warning System, a private organisation which monitors world events and estimates the nuclear threat against America, is now at Level 5 – its lowest possible state.

Just weeks ago the warning was accelerated to Level 3 following increased tensions between US and Russia, with insiders fearing the West was creeping closer to nuclear war.

Level 3 means US troops could be mobilised in as little as 15 minutes.

But the group, made up of experts claiming to have contacts within the US security industry, have seen Donald Trump’s election win as a pacifier for Russian relations.

The group wrote on its website: « The United States took a tentative step toward a more isolationist policy with its recent presidential election.
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Synthetic dissent: Proof of professional activists involved with anti-Trump protests

Tyler Durden
Zerohedge
2016-11-13 19:58:00

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In a story from November 12, USA Today writes an article to discredit the idea that the professional activist community is involved with organizing anti-Trump protests. They invite you to meet the protesters. USA today presents them as ordinary people. However, WikiLeaks exposes them as experienced protest organizers and activists.

USA Today presents the protests as spontaneous, involving people from « all walks of life » – certainly not professional protesters. If anyone in the crowd has protest experience, it hasn’t been since the Vietnam Era:

They come in all ages and walks of life, unflinching and determined to be heard.

Mothers with young children, hoping to impart an up-close lesson in history. Animated college students stretching their political vocal cords